MANHATTAN BEACH, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- SKECHERS USA, Inc. (NYS: SKX) today announced that its North American distribution center in Rancho Belago, California has been officially certified LEED Gold by the U.S. Green Building Council. Designed and built by developer Highland Fairview to the highest environmental standards, the 1.82 million-square-foot SKECHERS facility is the largest LEED certified building in the United States to have received this honor.

SKECHERS North American distribution center in Rancho Belago, California. (Photo: Business Wire)

"SKECHERS is committed to growing its business in a way that conserves natural resources, protects the environment and reduces waste," said David Weinberg, SKECHERS Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer. "In addition to efficiently distributing our product across North America, the SKECHERS Rancho Belago facility is an outstanding example of how large corporations can grow their business while also promoting Earth-friendly practices. We're proud of the design innovation and 'green' features that can be found throughout the facility."

"We are honored to receive this unique recognition. A LEED Gold designation is a tremendous achievement for any size project and to be recognized for the largest most advanced sustainable development of its kind in the U.S. is especially rewarding," said Highland Fairview President and Chief Executive Officer Iddo Benzeevi.

LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification for commercial buildings involves a scorecard that evaluates several categories: sustainability, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere, materials and resources, indoor environmental quality, and innovation. The SKECHERS distribution center, which received its certification on December 28, 2012, earned 41 points from this scorecard to secure LEED Gold certification. Key features include:

280,000 square-feet of solar power generation systems on the roof.

Lighting that operates as needed, regulated by motion sensors and powered in part by solar panels.

A warehouse ventilation system that utilizes outside air drawn through louvers facing the prevailing winds, plus energy efficient heating and cooling systems.

Water efficient and drought tolerant landscaping that reduces irrigation by 50 percent.

A Water Pollution Prevention Program that captures and treats storm water runoff from 90 percent of annual rainfall.

Low-emitting paints, coatings, glues, and sealants that comply with LEED standards were used during construction.

Recycled and regional building materials were sourced within 500 miles of the construction site. The majority of on-site construction waste materials were recycled as well.

Weinberg added: "With the capacity to annually ship 100-million pairs of shoes, this state-of-the-art automated facility will allow us to efficiently grow our business with reduced impact to the environment. And, with the addition of a SKECHERS retail store at the site, we can service the local community."

The official groundbreaking ceremony for the SKECHERS distribution center took place in March 2010, and was attended by then governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, and the building opened for operation in November 2011. In addition to the warehouse operations - which can process 18,000 to 20,000 pairs of shoes for distribution in one hour - the structure includes 20,000 square-feet of office space and a SKECHERS retail store.

ABOUT SKECHERS USA, INC.

SKECHERS USA, Inc. (NYS: SKX) , based in Manhattan Beach, California, designs, develops and markets a diverse range of footwear for men, women and children under the SKECHERS name. SKECHERS footwear is available in the United States via department and specialty stores, Company-owned SKECHERS retail stores and its e-commerce website, and over 100 countries and territories through the Company's global network of distributors and subsidiaries in Brazil, Canada, Chile, Japan, and across Europe, as well as through joint ventures in Asia. For more information, please visit www.skechers.com, and follow us on Facebook (www.facebook.com/SKECHERS) and Twitter (twitter.com/SKECHERSUSA).

ABOUT Highland Fairview

Highland Fairview is a privately held real estate development company specializing in the development of large scale, industrial, commercial and residential projects. Highland Fairview and its affiliate companies currently own approximately five square miles of properties within Southern California which are in various stages of development. Highland Fairview's is committed to sustainable development through its Full-Life-Cycle approach to development

This announcement may contain forward-looking statements that are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements include, without limitation, any statement that may predict, forecast, indicate or simply state future results, performance or achievements, and can be identified by the use of forward looking language such as "believe," "anticipate," "expect," "estimate," "intend," "plan," "project," "will be," "will continue," "will result," "could," "may," "might," or any variations of such words with similar meanings. Any such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause or contribute to such differences include international, national and local general economic, political and market conditions including the ongoing global economic slowdown and market instability; entry into the highly competitive performance footwear market; sustaining, managing and forecasting costs and proper inventory levels; losing any significant customers, decreased demand by industry retailers and cancellation of order commitments due to the lack of popularity of particular designs and/or categories of products; maintaining brand image and intense competition among sellers of footwear for consumers; anticipating, identifying, interpreting or forecasting changes in fashion trends, consumer demand for the products and the various market factors described above; sales levels during the spring, back-to-school and holiday selling seasons; and other factors referenced or incorporated by reference in the Company's annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2011 and its quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the three months ended September 30, 2012. The risks included here are not exhaustive.The Company operates in a very competitive and rapidly changing environment. New risks emerge from time to time and the companies cannot predict all such risk factors, nor can the companies assess the impact of all such risk factors on their respective businesses or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements. Given these risks and uncertainties, you should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements as a prediction of actual results. Moreover, reported results should not be considered an indication of future performance.